Flames and Embers
by The Reluctant Heroine
Summary: He was a flame; fierce and burning with passion that no one can match. His fire licks carefully upon the edges, controlled, tantalized, ever-seeking for questions that no one dare ask. He needs answers but finds none.【 Axel 】
1. Summary

**SUMMARY:**

He was a flame; fierce and burning with passion that no one can match. His fire licks carefully upon the edges, controlled, tantalized, ever-seeking for questions that no one dare ask. He needs answers but finds none.

She was an ember; dying and flickering with emotions blur enough to fade. Her ashes heedlessly blown away by the wind, deluded, devitalized, burdened with all the answers that no one dare says. She needs questions but has none.

A life finding purpose and a purpose seeking life. Questions and Answers. Faith and Doubt. Her Flame and His Ember. They know the truth but will they understand?

* * *

 **I've been clearing my laptop folders lately. I saw this file and decided that it would be a total waste of brain power if I won't continue this. So, here I am holding on to the little memory I have of Kingdom Hearts and Axel.**

 **Extra-note: T** **his story was from a** **lifetime ago. If there's anything that needs correcting, feel free to do it in the comment section. I would really appreciate it when the time comes. I admit,** **my knowledge of KH is a bit rusty. Don't worry! I'm making efforts to refresh my mind.**

 **Until then.**


	2. The Stories Untold

**The Stories Untold**

-THE CHILD OF THE NIGHT-

"Keep your head held high. Remember, always, Nyxe - You are the night that envelops kingdom hearts."

Xemnas words echoed involuntarily in my head. It went on like a painful mantra; a curse for our enemies if we ever have one. They called me a hefty few of creative names: The child of the night. The dark of the hearts. The manipulator. The puppeteer. Witch. I found out that everybody has an obsession with naming. After all, name means power and power is what we seek in this world. There is no denying it. It's a part of who we are, it's a part of what makes us our own person.

I wrung my hands for the tenth time today. Nervous. A feeling. I felt nervous. They thought we had no capacity to harbor emotions. Wrong. We're just like any other person that lurks but we are not entitled with our own pasts. We do have a separate identity but we are not whole. We are distinguished but not as unique. We are Nobodies. We have no hearts but we do have a brain to think with. It was always an afterthought to them; it was a subtle hint of emotion to me.

'Idiotic' I thought. My hair was let loose today. I tried so hard not to fumble with stray strands. It was a shameful anxious habit of mine. I knew Xemnas cared for 'character' but I never thought he was this intense. I sighed. "No fear, quite convincing, Nyxe" It came out as a furious whisper.

Xemnas raised a silver brow at me. I ranted my apologies.

"I told Saïx to pair you up with someone rather "in-sync" with you." He twirled his glass of wine, the liquid barely spilling on his white throne. I held my breath. "I know you value silence, so Zexion it is." My thank you came out as soon as I heard Zexion's name. If it was Demyx or Xigbar, I wouldn't know what to do. I left the office in secret.

"Nyxe." The familiar tone was almost music to my ears. I turn around to see Zexion and his signature pale blue hair. He was silent, as usual, and it took one nod to tell him that I was ready. He summoned the dark corridor and we reappeared at Twilight Town.

I was about to start executing the mission when I heard Zexion call for me again. "Nyxe." He motioned for me to come closer. I did. This was quite an unusual happening.

"What." I spat out rather harshly at him. He winced and I almost felt sorry. "What..." I repeated a softer time. My eyes gave him an unforgiving glare. I hate the fact that I have to shun myself away from them. I hate it that I have to.

"Marluxia is planning something and we certainly need your help" I furrowed my brows. Marluxia. His name was almost as synonymous with trouble. Whatever they're planning, it did not sound good. I gave him the benefit of my doubt.

"Hm. Listening." I pretend to be engrossed in the topic. With a quick flick of the wrist, I gestured for him to continue.

"We had a feeling you'd also understand. It's against Xemnas so-" I turned my back at him. Zexion let out a muffled "hm?!", trying to suppress his surprise at my rejection. It's not like I'm faithful to Lord Xemnas or anything of the sort, I just didn't want to get involved. My job was physically demanding enough for me. They don't know that, though. I hid it too well. The forthcoming events will make it even harder. I don't know if I still have time to sleep let alone, accomplish their missions.

"I'm sorry." I manage to say.

"Pardon?" There was an ounce of hope lingering in his tone. I crushed it before it even had the chance to pounce on me.

"You heard me, I'm sorry. I cannot agree with you on this." I summoned Nightbringer and slashed at the chest in front of me. A cymbal monkey bounced off it. I put it to rest with a critical blow to the head. "It's not worth it."

"You haven't heard the reasons and you're already objecting." Zexion stated. It was his "as a matter of fact" tone that put me off.

Before he knew it, the tip of my scimitar was pointed at his face. A menacing gesture. I did not care. "No is the answer."

"Why?" He stepped forward, defying my actions, not afraid of the blade that I held. I have to congratulate him for his stupid bravery. Risky. Too risky.

A grin made its way on my lips. "You will all Fade." I reached for the dark essence surrounding me, pulled and manipulated it with surprising gentleness. The purebloods in front of us begun to stir, their bodies now not their own. I glanced back at Zexion. "Don't try to push me." There was a flicker of recognition in his eyes. That's when I decided to slam the heartless together.

"Remember?" I thought he did but he didn't.


	3. A Flicker of Recognition

**A Flicker of Recognition**

-THE FLURRY OF DANCING FLAMES-

"Axel..." A low hush awaken me from my slumber. Damn this people are so annoying. They sent me away to hell knows where, let me battle heartless for a few days and then wake me up just when I reached Dreamland. I don't know how I can live with this bunch! I'm tired and sick of getting bossed around by Saix and that stupid excuse of a superior, Sexman. I just want to rip their-

"Axel." The whisper sounded more urgent. I stirred on my bed, now facing the owner of the voice.

"Hey Xal." I grinned sleepily at the man. His hair was disheveled, maybe from fighting heartless, and his breaths left in short intervals. "What brings you to my humble crib?"

Xaldin rolled his eyes, a frown now forming on his lips. "Saix. Asap."

"Again?" I put on my shoes and begun following the man's lead. "He called for me this morning. Does he knows I just RTCed from that damn mission he assigned to me? God damn heartless doesn't know how to stand still." Xaldin walked silently by my side, regarding me with his signature annoyed stare. "If he doesn't know, can you inform him?" Gosh, I appreciate Zal's talkativeness if he actually talked to me.

He clicked his tongue before turning to finally face me. "We found a new member while you're gone. You should meet..." I cut him off.

"Oh, a new member in such a short notice. Some kind of slacker again? Newbie? Do pray-tell it's not the Demyx type. We don't need another boy."

Xaldin narrowed his gaze. "You think it's a he?"

I playfully cocked my head to the side. "He's a she, then?" Well, if the new member is a girl, I can imagine Larxene and her going head to head. What a wonderful sight will it be! I hope the newbie is not as rude and painfully sassy as her. Or maybe just a little. Just for the fun of it.

"As I was saying, you should go-" Xaldin momentarily stopped walking. I raised a lazy brow at him. "Nevermind, she's approaching us anyway."

I sighed. Well, time to work my charm on this lady. Hope she doesn't bite my head off. I ruffled my hair a little and let out a sharp laid-back chuckle. If there's one thing I'm certain of, the women love the "chuckle". I waited a few seconds to exhibit that "slowly looking up and surprise to see you" face.

As I did, I found myself gaping at her.

She was attractive, we'll give her that, but it was not her beauty that made me stare. It was the rich color of her eyes; it had a familiar golden glint in its dark green. I think I saw it somewhere but I just couldn't remember. Was it from a dream I had? Or was it from the day in Castle Oblivion? I'm certain that I did.

Her bright platinum hair, leaning more on the white side, fell flat straight down to her torso. You could tell it was bothering her by the string of aggressive whispers she let out. I turned to Xaldin. "Go on without me, I'll be there in a sec."

The man gave me a firm grasp on the shoulder. "She's not the talkative type."

"I know, can't we all see." I glared at Xaldin with mock disbelief. He grinned.

I loosened my pace a bit, going a little slower than usual. When Xal and I were in a considerable distance away from each other, I let my shoulder slump with a contented sigh.

The girl looked up, greeted Xal with a nod, and then went back to fiddling with her locks. 'She didn't see me' I thought. I stopped for a few heartbeats before managing a small "Hey."

She looked confused at first. Blink. Irritated. Second Blink. Lost. Third Blink. Realization. I scoffed.

I reached out my hand for her to shake. "I believe we haven't met before. My name's-"

"Nyxe." I saw her grab my pinky. She gave it a lousy shake. "And you're Axel." I masked my surprise with a cheeky grin. I bet news spread like wildfire: Good-looking Pyro returns from a three week hunt, brings honor to the organization. I inwardly gave myself a congratulatory pat on the back. 'Good job, Axel."

"Got it-"

"I'll commit it to memory." There was a mischievous look in her eyes but it was gone before it even got the time to show. She knows something. It was kinda eating me up if I think of it that way. She had a blank face. Her aura was a different story to tell. The atmosphere was beginning to become warm and heavy, as if there's some kind of detail that I'm missing.

I scratched the back of my head. "You know, handshakes don't work like that." She gave me a pointed look; a platinum brow raised in question.

"I know." Nyxe stalked off with no goodbye. A rude thing to do, but not really. She was certainly not the talkative type but not a shy one either. I guess it was her nature.

"Well, Goodbye to you too." I whispered to myself. From the far end of the hallway, I heard a melodious soprano. A quick laugh. It died down immediately with no flourish. It bothered me a lot to hear that laugh. It was not an eery sound nor a sarcastic tune. It was just bothering.

It sounds so... familiar. Distant, but familiar.


	4. Not Afraid

**Not Afraid**

-THE FLURRY OF DANCING FLAMES-

I could hear Demyx complain about Nyxe from the other room.

"She's savage! I asked her if Saix was the one assigning the missions and-AND!" There was a long pause. "And she whispered in the most grave voice 'How dumb are you?' I swear to the skies, she's the devil incarnate!" I let out a low chuckle as I finished brushing the last strands of my hair. As much as I hate lazy people like him, he was fun to be with if you want a good laugh. Demyx is just slightly annoying when he's slacking off on a mission.

"Well you're really that dumb, noh? We perfectly know that Saix is the one assigning the missions." The other voice from Xigbar. Xigbar can be a really nice guy if he wasn't pissing me off constantly. I can almost smell his awful sense of humor from a far. That drunkard and his "hot shots"- hot shots my ass. Bastard is as lame as his hair dye choice.

Demyx sighed. "It was a rhetorical question, okay!" I decided that it was time to enter the room. I swaggered towards the two men in my usual demeanor. They both turned their heads towards me.

"Yo. Flamesilocks." Xigbar was extra-talkative today, nothing that a good old smack on the head can fix.

He hissed. "You bastard!"

I cut him off before another disgusting word left his mouth. "Lil' ol Demyx here got a dilemma" Demyx groaned as I gave him a pat on the back. "Looks like you're stuck with Nyxe again today."

The poor boy's head shot up, a look of panic evident on his face. "My death is near, I could hear my deceased gold fish calling me, motioning me to-"

That's when the door creaked open. "Morning." There was a flash of bright platinum and then was followed by a pool of dark green and a pint of warm gold. It was Nyxe and her white hair loosely braided.

She looked around, surveying the scene. Her eyes darted from me to Xigbar to Demyx. Nyxe nodded her head at the blonde. "Demyx. Hurry up." Demyx' whole body tensed when he heard his name. Man, he was really scared. Last time I saw him like that is when Larxene found out about his nightly visits to her panty drawer. I let out a hearty laugh, Xigbar following suit.

"Nyxe." The lady averted her attention to me. There was a ghost of a sadistic grin on her lips. Demyx really owes me big time. "You're with me today."

She stared at me like I grew a second head. Blink. Confusion. Second Blink. Sarcasm. Third Blink. She had enough of my shit. "Is that so? I wasn't informed." Demyx nodded gratefully at me and then at Nyxe.

"Yeah! Quick change of plans. I'll be working on Axel's recon mission." The cowardly Demyx is long gone and was replaced by the old laid-back blonde that I learned to partially hate. "Toodles!"

I caught on with Nyxe's blank gaze. "You don't mind, do you?" I asked.

She clicked her tongue. "Do I have a choice?" Her eyes darted to Xigbar. The man shrugged. There's her answer. "We'll be going then." There was a subtle "piss off" in her tone that you'll never hear if you don't listen closely. I opened up a portal for the both of us and bowed as if welcoming a royal. "After you, milady."

She raised a brow. It seems to be the thing she always does when you did something unusual. Nyxe mumbled inaudible nothings but when she passed by me, I heard her cuss and then whisper: "I killed chivalry and this is what I get?"

Xigbar and I exchanged a look. "She hates you now." The man bluntly said.

I laughed. "As if."


	5. Silence Broken

**Silence Broken.**

-THE CHILD OF THE NIGHT-

Ice cream. The word sounded sweet on my tongue; too sweet that it turned bitter.

"Hey." Axel cut me off from my small reverie. I turned to glare at him. He was the worst partner I ever had. I had to beg him to be silent ten times already. He still screamed when he fought. He still laughed when I asked him to shut up. Axel was stubborn and it's a total pain.

"We can go get some ice cream. You've been staring at that billboard for a long time already." I was starting to feel a huge amount of dislike for this man. He was nice but he's... he's worse than Demyx and Xigbar and Saix combined. He doesn't know when to refrain from talking. He doesn't how to silently do things. He's loud, obnoxious and strangely poetic.

I flared my nostrils and grabbed the tip of my braid. It was an aggravated habit of mine. Good lord, if only I could gag him then tie him to a stake and burn him alive and-

"Nyxe."

"What." I spat out angrily. My hand was outstretched as if he was a heartless and I was about to strangle him with the dark forces within me. He cocked his head to the side, a light blue solid-substance on both of his hands.

"Chill. I didn't do anything." He presented the stick in front of me. I stared at it as if it's some kind of abomination. When did he leave the tower and why did I not notice him? I'm not really in the mood to devour cold sweets. I continued to glare daggers at the thing.

"Ice cream?" Axel shrugged. "It's good. Don't worry."

"It's not poisoned?" I didn't realize that I said the words until it came out of my mouth. I snatched the stick from his hands, mumbling a soft "Thank you", and then continued on with my staring contest.

The man laughed. I shot an irritated look at him.

"Live a little, won't you?" He grabbed my shoulder and pushed me. I lost my balance, moved forward a little bit and felt my stomach turn upside down. I found myself staring at a hundred feet below without no ropes to hold me. What is his damn problem!

"Ack!" I screamed, followed by a string of curses that I aggressively whispered. Axel continued to laugh. He's testing my patience and frankly, I don't have enough left.

"You love to whisper." He said out of the blue.

"I hate to talk." I stated matter-of-factly. My facial muscles relaxing into a blank state.

Axel took a bite out of his ice cream. He sat down on the tip of the clock tower, patting the empty space beside him. His arm rested comfortably on his knee like he was hanging out on a balcony. My mind told me he has a death wish. I couldn't blame him. Life as a nobody is like life living but not really living. You're there but you're really not. You don't exist but you do at the same time. It's easy to understand if you know the angle to look at.

I hesitantly sat down beside the man, careful enough so I won't fall to my eventual death, and took a bite out of the stick. I cringed a little at the saltiness of it. Axel noticed.

"Don't like it?" I shook my head. I was about to throw away the ice cream when the man grabbed my arm. "First time usually is shit. Second time's a charm."

I furrowed my brows at the man. "What are you implying?"

He pointed at my stick. "Taste it again." I obediently nodded.

The second time was pleasant as promised. The ice cream had a sweet aftertaste subtle enough that you won't notice it at first. The flavor was welcoming if you have time to savor; it reminded me so much of a distant memory of home. A ghost of a grin traced my lips and I took another bite out of it.

"Told ya." The man ruffled his hair. I sighed.

"Axel?"

"Hm?"

"You're a burning pain in the arse." I said, completely void of any emotion.

"Hm." He laughed at my remark.

I inwardly smiled. That warm feeling hung there for a few minutes before it faded. There was silence and I realized, It's good to hear that laugh again.


	6. Books and Burning

**Books and Burning**

-THE CHILD OF THE NIGHT-

It was cleaning day.

I was tasked to help the members clean their rooms since there wasn't so much stuff to arrange at mine. Most of them didn't need any help, others were quite grateful. It was strange to have this small events at the castle; I never thought that nobodies still need to "get the castle straight". In my opinion, the castle was pretty much spotless and cleaning would be unnecessary. I guess I jumped to conclusions too early.

Marluxia told me to tend to his disk garden in his room. I trimmed the plants just to kill time while he cleared all the junk in his closet. Empty hairclay containers seem to be an abundance in the organization. I just saw Demyx and Axel dispose of some and now, Marluxia is debating whether to turn his hairclay stash into portable gardens. He asked me a question and two about flower colors. I would always reply with "Black". He always laughed.

Sometimes, laughing makes me think why Nobodies won't welcome the thought of emotions. They think they don't have the capacity to 'feel' but their consciousness are riddled with hints of feelings. It's in the way they speak and how they think. It's in their system, though, they continually deny it. I averted my attention to the man in front of me, engrossed with his closet cleaning, and huffed. "I forgot that I still have errands to run for Zexion and Luxord." I stated with annoyance.

Marluxia nodded his head. "You should see to that." He faced me. I noticed that his cloak turned almost gray because of the dust. 'When did he last clean his closet?' I wondered. I bid him goodbye with a strained smile.

"You know." The man spoke calmly. "You're pretty good to be a bad guy. I beg you reconsider your loyalty to the superior." I ignored his remark and regarded it as if it fell on deaf ears. I was not bound to anyone in this organization, I rather put my own agendas first than grovel at Xemnas' feet. My loyalty is none of their business, I get to choose whether I do it or not.

The library was not too far away from Marluxia's quarters. I had to stop by at Demyx' to check if he's doing fine. He was always tensed and wary around me. I didn't mind. Fear is a force equal to love; they make you question everything you stand for. I've gravitated more towards the former than the latter. It's easier that way.

Three soft knocks were all that it took before Zexion opened the door. His hair was in its usual neat-messy state with a few strands covering his other eye. I asked him once how can he read with only one eye. It's not meant to humor him or anything, I was simply curious. He swore to decapitate me on the spot. I never asked again.

"Axel borrowed volumes of these accounts. Retrieve them for me. " Zexion handed me a piece of paper with a few titles written on it. I groaned. Does he expect me to carry these all? The man raised a brow in question.

"Not fond of him?" He asked.

I gave him a humorless smile. "Not fond of carrying heavy objects either."

Zexion stared at me as if I was dumb. His eyes were stoic and distant. He was probably plotting the best way to kill me. I shrugged. "I know I'm supposed to help you out but you're abusing my kindness."

The man clicked his tongue, weary of this conversation. "The sooner you get it done the better and the lesser you complain." I lurked away from him and his nasty mood. I didn't feel like participating in a sass contest where I know that I couldn't win.

"Nyxe." I turned around to see the subject of our dispute. His spiky red hair was not in a natural order. One spike even hung out lifeless along the side of his ear. It was not a pleasant sight, but at least he had some work done.

I approached him with a questioning look. "Been cleaning?" I asked as I tried to put back the dead spike in place.

"You bet." He swatted my hand away with a low hiss. "Watch the spikes."

I didn't try to argue with him. I just want to get this done with, carry those books to Zexion, and proceed to Luxord's tasks for the day. I handed Axel the crumpled paper. He stared at the titles, trying to remember where he last placed the volumes, and then muttered "shit" in the most grave voice.

"You read?" I ask, an attempt to worsen his mood.

He clicked his tongue and laughed. "No, I just stare at the pictures you know." Axel's pursed his lips. He placed his index finger on his head and leaned closer. "Of course, I do. What am I? Illiterate?"

I shrugged. I silently clenched my teeth before I came out with a come back to his sarcasm. "Maybe. You don't strike me as the reading type."

Axel's hand went to his chest, mock disbelief on his face. "Why do you persecute me so much, babe." He emphasized the word 'babe', prolonging the "b". I raised my brow. A silent answer to his sass challenge.

"I'm just stating my opinion, darling." A ghost of a smile on my lips.

Axel narrowed his eyes. "Someone just got bolder."

"Actually, someone just got even more stupid."

"Ouch. Below the belt."

"Get use to the low blows." I pointed out, fiddling with my hair for the added annoying effect.

Axel's lips formed a silent "O" and then he smirked. Right then, I realized my mistake. "I'll get used to it. My room or yours?" Here comes the dreaded part.

I let out a sharp "Ha!" and sneered. "Are you sure there's anything to blow?" I rolled my eyes. "Or maybe all your length went straight right into your ego." I gave him a taunting-sweet smile and then winked.

His face shot a look of surprise. Axel opened his mouth to speak but closed it immediately. He flinched. "You're awfully sassy." A look of defeat. "Larxene rubbed you off?" He grinned a boyish grin.

"Zexion, actually." I stated matter of factly, my face starting to relax into a blank state.

Axel's nose wrinkled in sympathy. "Bad choice." He proceeded to walk to his room. I decided to follow suit, matching his long strides with quick short ones. " I thought you didn't talk too much." His hands went to ruffle his messy hair.

I stopped right on my tracks. "Axel." He craned his neck to look back at me. "Sarcasm is universal and burning you..." I smirked. "better said than done."

He laughed while grabbing the door knob of his room. "You coming?" Axel gestured at the door, a bright mocking smile on his face.

I raised a platinum brow. "Can you stop with the sexual innuendos already?" I rolled my eyes.

He bit his lips, trying to suppress his incoming laughter. I sighed. "You lost the books didn't you? I'm telling Zexion."

"Shit."

 **A/N:**

 **A little filler chapter to cope up with my rather short updates.**

 **I also won 2nd Place in the recent Division School Press Conference for campus journalism. Funny thing is, I continously told my editor-in-chief that I was a creative writer and not a journalist. I didn't even know what I was doing during the event but hey! For a girl two years younger than her opponents that isn't too bad, I guess? I mean come on! Out of a hundred Student Journalists from different schools? I still don't consider myself as a full-fledged campus journalist though. I enjoy creative writing more and I think I'm happy writing fanfictions under an alias than writing for the newspaper. That's Saki's job so peace. Enough of the rant! Hope you enjoyed the chappie!**

 **ZEPHYR**


End file.
